We disclose a technology implemented on a computer that automates sequential display of messages, typically videos, which appear on a user's display screen in the same place or in overlapping areas of a single window in a browser. In particular, this relates to displaying a message that arbitrarily may be in a different format than a requested video, with the first message programmed to appear before or after the requested video in substantially the same area of the user's display screen where the requested video will appear or has appeared. The message and the requested video are sequenced without any need to match formats or players used.
There are thousands or millions of ways to build a web page. There are a even more alternatives, beyond building a web page, for presenting a user sequentially with a message and then a video. One conventional approach uses software such as Apple's iMovie® or a professional editing suit to prepend a message to a video and render it as a single file in the desired format. Another conventional approach uses a web page authoring package such as Apple's iWeb® to compose a page. A web authoring package typically renders the content to a web-optimized format that it can conveniently display. For instance, a group of photo albums may be rendered so that rolling a mouse pointer over a thumbnail that represents an album scrolls through thumbnails of some or all of the album content. Instead of following these approaches or other conventions, these inventors developed the approach disclosed below for sequentially displaying messages to a user.
The opportunity to build a better mousetrap is ever present. In addition, an opportunity was recognized by these inventors to develop a better technology for sequentially displaying messages in a single browser window, such as a pair of videos or a message and a video. Better, more easily configured and controlled, more resilient and transparent components and systems may result.